Black Fish in town

A SMALL international marine conservation group is heading to Shetland to host a talk on illegal fishing practices in the Mediterranean.

The Black Fish group was founded three years ago by Dutchman Wietse van der Werf and has its headquarters in Amsterdam.

The group is now in the middle of a UK-wide publicity tour and is hosting an event in St Magnus Church Hall, Greenfield Place, in Lerwick on Sunday, at 7pm.

Van der Werf said they had made a conscious decision to visit a fishing community to raise awareness and seek support for their campaigns.

“It is all very well to be in middle of London and talk to people about destructive fishing techniques – that’s always an easy way,” he said.

“Shetland is a community that has relied on the sea for centuries. People in the fishing industry should especially care about the fact that certain sectors within the industry – and I am not talking about Shetland or the UK – continue to break the law.

“We focus on illegal fishing practices in the Mediterranean. We train people to act as citizen inspectors in fishing ports.

“If we can collect evidence of illegal fishing practices we then can push for prosecution to ensure that existing laws are at least enforced.”

He added that he was aware that local fishermen had in the past been prosecuted for illegal fishing practices, but insisted the group wanted to raise awareness and was not planning any demonstration in the isles.

“We do feel that the community should be part of this discussion,” van der Werf added.

The Black Fish group mainly campaigns against illegal drift netting and using dynamite to fish coral reefs.

Further information can be found at www.theblackfish.org